Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Down 0.2%

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) fell 0.2% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $160.79 and last traded at $161.04. 630,795 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 91% from the average session volume of 7,267,079 shares. The stock had previously closed at $161.43.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. TD Securities cut their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $161.00 to $171.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.21.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The company has a 50 day moving average of $153.21 and a 200-day moving average of $153.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $388.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.04, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.52.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.11. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 36.60% and a net margin of 46.34%. The company had revenue of $22.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.33 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.80 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.07 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 27th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners now owns 2,666 shares of the company’s stock worth $418,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth $6,093,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 297,850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,685,000 after acquiring an additional 15,490 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 98,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,499,000 after buying an additional 2,345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Peterson Wealth Services increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 25,773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,040,000 after buying an additional 2,285 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

Johnson & Johnson, together with its subsidiaries, researches, develops, manufactures, and sells various products in the healthcare field worldwide. The company's Innovative Medicine segment offers products for various therapeutic areas, such as immunology, including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and psoriasis; infectious diseases comprising HIV/AIDS; neuroscience, consisting of mood disorders, neurodegenerative disorders, and schizophrenia; oncology, such as prostate cancer, hematologic malignancies, lung cancer, and bladder cancer; cardiovascular and metabolism, including thrombosis, diabetes, and macular degeneration; and pulmonary hypertension comprising pulmonary arterial hypertension through retailers, wholesalers, distributors, hospitals, and healthcare professionals for prescription use.